3D Printing With Metals (DMLS)

The direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) process is sometimes referred to as metal 3d printing or a metal 3d printer. DMLS uses a laser beam to melt 20-40 micron layers of metal powder on top of each other to create metal parts. This additive process is similar to 3d printing, although metal powder is spread across a build platform and melted instead of a plastic filament being extruded.

Parts created using DMLS are fully dense metal with excellent mechanical properties. Other metal 3d printing processes exist which use a binder, although they produce parts which are not fully dense metal. The DMLS process can produce complex geometries which traditional CNC machining processes are not capable of.